title: Chronic myeloid leukemia with thrombocythemic onset may be associated with different BCR/ABL variant transcripts.
abstract: Ph-positive chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) mimicking essential thrombocythemia (ET) at onset seems to be a distinct clinical entity. Whether this rare clinical form of CML is associated with single, specific variants of BCR/ABL transcripts is a matter of debate. Among 82 consecutive patients with Ph-positive CML, we identified 3 patients in which the disease mimicked ET at presentation, because of marked thrombocytosis and moderate leukocytosis, with few immature myeloid cells in peripheral blood and blood basophilia in 2 of them. Molecular analysis with the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction technique showed the presence of b2a2, b3a2, and b3a2-b2a2 transcript variants in the three patients, respectively. The results of our study together with a review of literature data suggest that different BCR/ABL transcript variants may occur in CML mimicking ET, without an apparently significant prevalence of one type.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Sciences, University of Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Emilia
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Luppi
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Ferrari
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Temperani
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Marasca
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Giacobbi
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vaccari
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bandieri
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Di Donato
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Carapezzi
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Torelli
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D016044:Fusion Proteins, bcr-abl / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D015464:Leukemia, Myelogenous, Chronic, BCR-ABL Positive / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010641:Phenotype; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D013922:Thrombocytosis / Q000150:complications*; D014178:Translocation, Genetic
chemical_list: D012333:RNA, Messenger; D016044:Fusion Proteins, bcr-abl